Climate change and society - Speculation, construction and scientific investigation

This article traces the long intellectual history that seeks to understand the recursive relationship between variations in the Earth's climate and va riations in social structure and cultural practices. Contemporary sociologi cal investigations of this theme have evolved along two paths: the neo-idea listic orientation of social constructivism and a neo-realist orientation c omprising two complementary approaches. Both orientations are explicated an d evaluated, leading to a conclusion that provides programmatic directions.